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Employers can now begin registering for Ireland’s new pension auto enrolment system, My Future Fund, ahead of its formal launch on 1 January. The scheme is designed to bring hundreds of thousands of workers who currently have no occupational pension into retirement saving for the first time, and it places clear new obligations on employers.

Through the online employer portal on the My Future Fund website, businesses can set up their organisation profile and put a payment method in place to facilitate future contributions. The portal will remain available on an ongoing basis, however employers are strongly encouraged to complete registration well before contributions fall due.

If an employer has not created a company profile or arranged a payment method in time, they may face fines, penalties and, in more serious cases, potential prosecution for non-compliance. For accountants and finance teams, this is now a key compliance item to factor into year-end and early 2026 planning.

Who will be auto enrolled?

My Future Fund aims to bring approximately 750,000 workers into pension saving. Employees will be automatically enrolled where they:

• Are not already members of an occupational pension scheme
• Are aged between 23 and 60
• Earn more than €20,000 per year across all employments

Once those conditions are met, the employee will be included in the scheme without needing to take any action. After six months of participation, they will have the option to opt out or to suspend their membership if they wish.

Ireland has been the last OECD country to introduce a national auto enrolment retirement savings model, so this marks a significant structural change in how retirement provision is organised.

How contributions will work

The scheme is being phased in over a ten year period. At the outset, both employers and employees will contribute 1.5 per cent of gross qualifying earnings. Every three years this rate will increase by a further 1.5 per cent until it reaches 6 per cent each by year ten.

In addition to the employee and employer payments, the State will provide a top up of €1 for every €3 contributed by the employee. In effect, for every €3 that an employee saves, a further €3 will come from their employer and €1 will come from the State.

This structure means that employers need to plan for a gradually rising cost over the decade, rather than a one-off step increase.

Role of the new auto enrolment authority

A new statutory body, the National Automatic Enrolment Retirement Savings Authority (NAERSA), has been set up to administer the system. The Government has stressed that NAERSA is intended to minimise the administrative burden on employers.

NAERSA will:

• Use payroll data from Revenue to identify workers who meet the eligibility criteria
• Automatically enrol eligible employees into the scheme
• Manage employee opt ins, opt outs and suspensions
• Calculate the combined employee, employer and State contributions
• Issue Automatic Enrolment Payroll Notifications (AEPNs) to employers with the contribution amounts due through payroll

Employers will still need to ensure their payroll systems can handle AEPNs correctly and that cash flow planning reflects the rising contribution rates over time, but the core eligibility and enrolment calculations will be centralised within NAERSA.

Next steps for employers and advisers

For employers, and for accountants advising them, the immediate priorities are to:

• Register on the My Future Fund employer portal and set up payment details
• Review payroll processes so that AEPNs can be integrated smoothly
• Identify staff who are likely to fall within the eligibility criteria
• Communicate the upcoming changes to employees so that they understand how auto enrolment affects their pay and long-term savings

Taking these steps now should help businesses avoid penalties, manage the financial impact of the new obligations and support staff in building meaningful retirement savings over time.

Disclaimer: This article is based on publicly available information and is intended for general guidance only. While every effort has been made to ensure accuracy at the time of publication, details may change and errors may occur. This content does not constitute financial, legal or professional advice. Readers should seek appropriate professional guidance before making decisions. Neither the publisher nor the authors accept liability for any loss arising from reliance on this material.